Walking into the back room in the kitchen, Kelsey looked around for a step ladder in which she found hidden behind a cupboard in the near corner. Opening it before displaying it in front of the back wall, she climbed onto it before reaching up and taking down two empty platters.
Turning to lay them flat on one of the countertops, she moved back to grab another two trays when the light flickered slightly.
Furrowing her brows, she turned to see one of the light bulbs was about to give out. "Jesus Christ," she sighed, moving off the ladder to walk over to the counter. Pushing aside the trays, she brought the ladder over in order to help her climb on top, holding her dress up as she stood straight. Reaching with her other hand once she balanced herself, she began turning the bulb seeing that it was loose.
"Come on," she groaned, "not today." Licking her lips, she moved to her tip toes, turning the light bulb into place just for the light to brighten, blinding her almost immediately. Wincing from the sudden harsh light, she let go of her dress to cover her eyes, stumbling slightly on the bottom fringe causing her to fall over. Letting out a squeal, she tried to hold onto something but it was already too late.
Expecting to hit the ground, she gasped once her body fell into a pair of arms. "What the—"
"Are you trying to kill yourself?"
"Justin," she whispered, arms encircled around his neck as she exhaled, looking around and down at herself before looking back at him.
"That's my name," he breathed against her lips, chuckling slightly before resting her on her feet.
"Ow," she winced.
Immediately pulling her back up, he sat her down on the counter instead. Running his hands down her legs, he kneeled slightly to look at her ankle.
"Um," she coughed, chewing on the inside of her lip. "What are you – ow!" Looking down to see he was pressing against the side of her ankle, she held her breath, "that hurt."
"You sprained your ankle."
"Great," she laughed, "because today can't get any better."
"But," he emphasized, "you should be okay. It doesn't look too bad, all you need to do is ice it for a while and try and stay off of it and you should be able to walk down the aisle."
She looked at him, her heart hurting. "Thank you," she whispered.
Nodding, he coughed, removing his eyes from hers as he stood to retrieve ice from the corner freezer. Taking a clean rag, he put a few cubes inside of it before walking back over to her. Crouching in front of her, he took the step ladder, allowing it to take place of a chair as he pressed the ice against her ankle.
"You don't have to –"
"I know."
"You promised –"
"I know," he looked up at her. "I want to."
Unstrapping her heel, he laid it next to her on the counter. Running his thumb back and forth against the semi-swollen skin, he kept quiet, making sure not to say anything to ruin the moment. It had been a while since he was able to touch her, to be near her, and not have any hostility or hatred. No disappointment, no anger. It was almost calming.
Looking away, Kelsey tried to find something to occupy her thoughts, but being this close again had her at a loss. She didn't know what to do. "How are you?"
Furrowing his brows, Justin didn't know if she was talking to him or not. "What?"
"How are you?"
